A new 'tougher' thread... and so it continues

meanmarie

Welcome back Catbells.....do the deer in Nara still bow??

Congratulations on car PP

Marie

Catbells

Meme, VJs Mum, Ginnyknt, Hobson, Gintot.... Meanmarie Greyqueen and all - thanks for your kind welcoming words. As I said before its back to normal and it sucks! But am getting into the spirit (trying to at least). Spent hours trying to get the best car insurance deal going and learnt a lot in the process. I usually jsut renew the old one and now know NOT TO as I've saved over £100 shopping round.

Also been decorating and DIM (doing it myself) and helping my friend move house after a divorce which has been hard going. But she's in now thankfully.

Whats amazing is the rain. I've heard its been at it for a month or so. That must be another record. Especially down here in the south. Up north seems to be having much better weather.

Managed to finally get some birds into my relatively new garden. But there are two pigeons. Not the Trafalgar Square variety. These two look like the king and queen. Really fat and shiny and by now slow moving after eating all the bird food I've put out. I wish I could let them know when they've had enough and let the littler ones in.:)

PS. MeanMarie - It rained all day the day I went to Nara. There was a party of school children there and they all had umbrellas - it seems to rain a lot there. I cant remember if the deers were bowing that day but they were everywere - even in the street. Been there for a thousand years I heard. That temple is spectacular.

Byatt

Catbells, when you have time please tell us some tales.

VJsmum, thanks, you're right. It just stung a bit, but I'm ok now.

Gintot, my nan used to make Welsh cakes, love them.

Kate, sounds like you had a busy but nice day.

Catbells

Byatt wrote: »

Catbells, when you have time please tell us some tales.

I hope you like this little story.

I was staying in K's hostel in Kyoto which is a backpackers hostel. Adjoining it was a bar which doubled as a breakfast room. The first night I noticed a guy who I thought might speak English sitting at the bar. Bear in mind that there were very few English people out there so I fancied having a chat. He must have been in his 60s so not far off my age. So feeling brave (or foolhardy - not sure which). I popped in and sat at the bar and ordered a beer. Turned out he was Australian and we got chatting. He was ex military and he liked his beer or lager a lot. Seems like he came to Japan a lot and had a friend who ran a hotel there. Within half an hour he told me he suffered from sleep apnoeia (dont know if thats spelt right) and that he had difficulty breathing when asleep. Moments before death (he said) he would wake up when his brain told him he wasn't getting any oxygen. The result was an earth shattering scream and rumbling noise. He also said he was sleeping in one of the dormitories at the hostel. Next morning I went down to make some breakfast in the communal kitchen and there splayed out on the sofas in the sitting area were around 5 young people sleeping. I remembered what the Australian had told me and couldn't help smiling to myself. Next night I asked him if this incident had anything to do with him but he seemed oblivious. Thank god I didn't hear it!!!!:rotfl:

Catbells

GreyQueen wrote: »

Catbells, lovely to see you back again. Told you it'd be great, didn't we? Strange to think that travelling alone is a fear with no substance, when you actually confront it. In New Zealand, I kept bumping into a lady who'd turned 80 on the 26 hour flight from UK to NZ and was pottering around all over with her little trolley suitcase with plenty of companions young enough to be her great-grandkids. She was great fun and inspired me.

Thanks for this tale GreyQueen. She sounds a real inspiration at that age.

wrote:

PS; I'm listening to Bulgarian folk music. And a lot of it sounds like the Northumbrian pipes..........most peculiar. They do play bag-pipes made from the inner tubes of sheep up there, I've seen it with my very own eyes, so I suppose it's more or less the same thing. Kind people have described my music taste as eclectic. Unkind ones call it plain weird. But that's OK by me.:p:D

I really fancy listening to this Bulgarian music. Where did you find it? My dads family were County Durham people - Middleton in Teasdale and I always liked the northern folk music when we were up there.

kezlou

aye camping with a roof! even got the cold water and feezing cold to go with it cracking :rotfl:

yeah ginny, its rubbish, i'm going back to the doctors next week to see what else they can give me. I'm back on the codiene again, they offered tremadoyl but i said lets wait till next week and see how i am.

Got to wait for british gas to come back and repair the boiler. Our landlady has a homecare thing with them, daft thing is we told what was wrong with it and what part it needed. But did they listen nope, the daft things. So keep ya fingers crossed for me, hoping to have the heating and hot water back on tomorrow.

So funny yesterday, i applied for a job for a personal assistant thinking great full time position between 9 and 6 pm. Well as i was chatting away on the phone, i suddenly had this question thrown at me.
"what size is your chest?" me "well i'm quite large, why?". Them "Well its just so we make sure we have the right dress sizes for you to wear for the clients. Some our clients like you to wear tight clothing, others lacy." At this point i said oh could i call you back as i have to pick my son up.".

Turned out to be a bloody escort / prossie service!!! Typical i find a job with great pay amd its for that! Saying that if ever went to the red light district they'd pay me to put my clothes back on:):rotfl:

Told OH this when he plastering, not a combination, i had him in stitches. So the electrics are sorted, the pipeworks all done so its looking good. Just skimming the walls tomorrow, two cupboards built already, just another three to go. So its looking good.

Got a pre-assessment meeting in a week and half for DS2, very scary. Taking him and my eldest to a group tomorrow for children with ASD. The first we went they both enjoyed it as DS1 was able to play with children who don't have ASD. I get to chat with other parents, have coffee whilst the children roam free without being judged.

well going to have a cuppa and maybe watch hbc pacific, its been well made so far.

great news on the car PP!
cat bells - welcome back and what a fab time you've had:)

Byatt

Catbells wrote: »

I hope you like this little story.

I was staying in K's hostel in Kyoto which is a backpackers hostel. Adjoining it was a bar which doubled as a breakfast room. The first night I noticed a guy who I thought might speak English sitting at the bar. Bear in mind that there were very few English people out there so I fancied having a chat. He must have been in his 60s so not far off my age. So feeling brave (or foolhardy - not sure which). I popped in and sat at the bar and ordered a beer. Turned out he was Australian and we got chatting. He was ex military and he liked his beer or lager a lot. Seems like he came to Japan a lot and had a friend who ran a hotel there. Within half an hour he told me he suffered from sleep apnoeia (dont know if thats spelt right) and that he had difficulty breathing when asleep. Moments before death (he said) he would wake up when his brain told him he wasn't getting any oxygen. The result was an earth shattering scream and rumbling noise. He also said he was sleeping in one of the dormitories at the hostel. Next morning I went down to make some breakfast in the communal kitchen and there splayed out on the sofas in the sitting area were around 5 young people sleeping. I remembered what the Australian had told me and couldn't help smiling to myself. Next night I asked him if this incident had anything to do with him but he seemed oblivious. Thank god I didn't hear it!!!!:rotfl:

:rotfl:Fabulous! How scary would that have sounded!!

smileyt_2

Hello everyone! I'm off to bed but just popped in to say howdy.

Catbells welcome back! I bet you didn't miss our lovely weather whilst you were away!

Austin allegro that was some wedding present :mad: I hope your wife finds a job soon.

To all the poorlies, I hope you are feeling better. Byatt I hope pooch is OK

If I can get the link to work, you might like to have a look at my photobucket gallery and see what Bruno did to my chair a couple of weeks ago. He really can be a very naughty boy. Docky don't you go getting any ideas now, I don't want your Mum brandishing her rolling pin at me! (There are also pics of the cards and some other stuff I've made, plus a giant snowperson from a couple of years ago).
http://s956.photobucket.com/albums/ae45/smileyt_01/


ETA Kezlou I am pm-ing you.

Byatt

Smiley, oh my word!! The chair! :eek: Just the cutest pics of Bruno though especially the one where he's on the cushion on the floor. He just wanted to get it just right for comfort! :rotfl:

GreyQueen

Gintotmelinda wrote: »

OH has just made a batch of Welsh cakes on the batstone (griddle) so pull up a chair and I'll pour out the tea. How many sugars GQ?

Anyway have a lovely evening all.

Gintot

Milk, no sugar for me, please, Gintot. Tea is essential to my functioning. Welcome aboard.

Catbells wrote: »

I really fancy listening to this Bulgarian music. Where did you find it? My dads family were County Durham people - Middleton in Teasdale and I always liked the northern folk music when we were up there.

I bought it it Sofia, Bulgaria. Can't even tell you the artist as all the writing on it is in their script, which is a sort of Cyrillic (I think) and is about as legible to me as Arabic. I've PM'd you btw.

Awoke to stunning blue skies and sunshine, something barely seen for a month and am desperate to be outside in it and have to go to the salt-mine for most of the day.......sob. This working for a living malarkey really gets in the way of the important stuff like gardening. Think I shall have to re-sow my beetroots as they came up patchily several weeks ago and have stalled at cress-sized where some of them have been chewed by slugs.

I found a slug earlier in the week- showed it cold steel via the edge of the spade. They don't like it up 'em. Also disturbed a darling little froggy which was barely any bigger than the wretched slug so no chance that they can keep up with the slug population.

Righty, more tea!